WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hundreds of miles of new fences along the U.S.-Mexico border would be funded under a bill passed on Friday in the U.S. House of Representatives as part of an election-year clamp-down on illegal immigration.
About $1.2 billion would be spent during the fiscal year starting October 1 for southwest border fencing and other barriers. The money is part of a $34.8 billion bill for domestic security programs that are being beefed up following the September 11 attacks.
Under the bill, passed on a 412-6 vote, the beleaguered Federal Emergency Management Agency, which was roundly criticized for its slow, uncoordinated response to Hurricane Katrina last year, also would be overhauled.
The Senate was expected to pass the bill quickly, clearing it for President George W. Bush to sign into law.
The money "will accelerate the (Homeland Security) department's goal of obtaining operational control of these borders in less than five years," said Rep. Harold Rogers, a Kentucky Republican who pushed the bill through the House.
An estimated 12 million illegal immigrants live in the United States, many of whom entered through the porous southwestern border with Mexico. Republicans, hoping to hang on to their control of Congress in fall elections, have been pushing border security in reaction to voter anger.
But the huge spending bill gives the government up to an additional 17 months -- until June 1, 2009 -- to fully implement a border check plan that has angered Americans living in northern states and Canadians.
The program requires everyone entering the United States to show a passport or other high-tech ID at land border crossings, airports and seaports. Now, Canadians and Americans going back and forth over the 5,500 mile shared border can show other documents that security experts say are easily forged.
About $1.2 billion would be spent during the fiscal year starting October 1 for southwest border fencing and other barriers. The money is part of a $34.8 billion bill for domestic security programs that are being beefed up following the September 11 attacks.
Under the bill, passed on a 412-6 vote, the beleaguered Federal Emergency Management Agency, which was roundly criticized for its slow, uncoordinated response to Hurricane Katrina last year, also would be overhauled.
The Senate was expected to pass the bill quickly, clearing it for President George W. Bush to sign into law.
The money "will accelerate the (Homeland Security) department's goal of obtaining operational control of these borders in less than five years," said Rep. Harold Rogers, a Kentucky Republican who pushed the bill through the House.
An estimated 12 million illegal immigrants live in the United States, many of whom entered through the porous southwestern border with Mexico. Republicans, hoping to hang on to their control of Congress in fall elections, have been pushing border security in reaction to voter anger.
But the huge spending bill gives the government up to an additional 17 months -- until June 1, 2009 -- to fully implement a border check plan that has angered Americans living in northern states and Canadians.
The program requires everyone entering the United States to show a passport or other high-tech ID at land border crossings, airports and seaports. Now, Canadians and Americans going back and forth over the 5,500 mile shared border can show other documents that security experts say are easily forged.